KEY

TO THE

SCRIPTURE CATECHISM:

CONTAINING

EXPLANATIONS, QUESTIONS,

AND

MODELS OF LESSONS,

ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE MODE OF TEACHING SCRIPTURE,

ON THE

LESSON SYSTEM.

BY J. H. ELOUIS.

Whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for
our learning.-ROM. xv. 4.

LONDON:

PUBLISHED BY SIMPKIN, MARSHALL, AND CO., STATION-
ERS' HALL COURT; AND SAMUEL MILLS, THETFORD.

MDCCCXXXVI.

Entered at Stationers' Hall.

THETFORD: PRINTED BY SAMUEL MILLS.

INTRODUCTION.

The texts which form the answers in the Catechism are generally repeated verbatim as statements in this Key; in a few instances to have a distinct proposition to question upon, it has been found necessary to supply an ellipsis, or slightly to vary the original form of expression, but this has always been done without in any way affecting the sense of the passages which are afterwards to be committed to memory from the Catechism.

The Explanations given are such as appeared to be within the comprehension of the young. They will always admit of being substituted for the words explained, which are enclosed between crotchets [ ]

The first Questions, by separating the ideas in the sentence, will give to the pupil a clear perception of them. When, as at No. 61, p. 29, an answer from the Catechism forms two or more statements, the questions which follow the dash ― serve to connect the ideas in these, after they have been separately touched upon.

The Lessons are simple and not beyond the capacity of children. Instead of the plural pronoun We, the pronoun of the first person singular I, is always employed in order to render the application of these lessons to the individual more pointed.

No. 24, p. 9, offers an example of the manner in which the pupil may, by questioning, be made to deduce a lesson, should he not at once discern it.

The Recapitulatory Questions recall the statements to which corresponding numbers are prefixed. When the Catechism has been learned, these questions may be used to review the whole, or any part of it, as the number attached to each agrees with that in the Catechism.

DIRECTIONS FOR USING THE KEY.

1. Read aloud, from the Key, a statement, as No. 139,

p. 76.

Thou shalt love [thy neighbour] as thyself.

2. Enquire the meaning of the words between crotchets, [thy neighbour,] eliciting this, if possible, from the pupil.

3. Put the questions which follow next in order, Whom must you love, &c. observing to make the pupil answer with precision.

4. When a Lesson is to be drawn, read aloud the statement given and which has been made evident by the preceding questions,

We are commanded to love our neighbour as ourselves,

And enquire, What does that teach you? or, What do you learn from this? (Answer, That I must love my

neighbour as myself; or, That I must do no injury to my neighbour; or, That I must do unto my neighbour as I should wish him to do unto me.*)

REMARKS. I. The Catechism itself ought not to be placed in the hands of the pupil while he is instructed from the Key; but when the first subdivision of the first section has been gone through, he is to commit this portion to memory from the Catechism, in the exact words of Scripture; this will be a matter of no difficulty, as the ideas it contains will be perfectly familiar to him: the second and following subdivisions are to be taught in the same way from the Key and afterwards to be committed to memory, always observing not to proceed to another subdivision until the pupil is thoroughly acquainted with that which precedes it.

The subdivisions of sections are distinguished in the Key by the recapitulatory questions. The chapter and verse in the Catechism, as Ephes. iv. 5, are for reference and are not intended to be learned.

• With children, after a lesson has been deduced, it may be applied most effectually as to lasting impression, by either citing, or supposing a case which has occurred, or that might occur, and to which the lesson is applicable; for example: A boy had a favourite rabbit which strayed into the garden of a person who resided near him; this person instantly caught and killed it-In so doing did he act kindly to. wards his neighbour? (No) Did he violate any command? (Yes.) Which? (Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.) If you had a garden, how should you act in such a case? (I ought to return the rabbit to its owner.) And, lest it should destroy some of your plants, what might you request of him? (That it should be kept more carefully for the future, to prevent its paying another visit to my garden.)